Umbra stood at the edge of the crystalline plateau, a vantage point which seemed to hang between the multiverse and the void itself. Before him stretched the endless expanse: universes, timelines, and realms flickered like distant candles in an infinite sea of creation. The air was thick and heavy, turgid with the promise of what was to come.
Akari stood beside him, her crimson eyes reflecting the stars. An odd tension swirled between them, an unspoken understanding that something monumental was about to happen. Yet she couldn't help but feel ill at ease. Umbra's resolution was absolute, his will unshakeable, but his intentions… they were still shrouded in shadow.
"This," Umbra started off, in a deep and even tone that carried across the open plane, "is the beginning of something different.